Compartmentizable seat for railroad coaches and the like



March 24, 1953 GILES 2,632,408

E. M. COMPARTMENTIZABLE SEAT FOR RAILROAD COACHES AND THE LIKE Filed Oct. 4, 1951 3; QZ/ezzfor:

III'IIIIIII'IIIII'I'IIIIIIM Patented Mar. 24, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFICE COMPARTMENTIZABLE SEAT FOR RAIL- ROAD COACHES AND THE LIKE 14 Claims.

My invention relates to enclosable seating facilities for railroad passenger coaches and the like and has reference more particularly to an improved arrangement of individualized seats disposed obliquely between the center aisle and the side wall of the coach which provide ample reclining space for each passenger and which may be enclosed to constitute a private compartmentlike space without appreciable reduction in seating capacity.

The railroads derive a substantial proportion of their passenger revenue from coach fares which, though considerably lower per passenger, often total as much or more per car than the fares obtained from Pullman cars owing to the greater number of passengers that may be carried in a coach.

The economy of coach travel is an important factor in attracting to the railroads passengers who might otherwise travel by other low cost modes of transportation. Hence the railroads are concerned with enhancing the attractiveness of coach travel Without unduly limiting the passenger capacity per coach which must, of course, be maintained to make the lower fares possible.

The railroads have made great strides in improving their passenger coaches, but there are sti11 certain discomforts and inconveniences associated with overnight and long distance coach travel which have not heretofore been overcome, even in the newest and most luxuriously appointed coaches. Up to this time, coach passengers have not been afforded any privacy and they have not been able to stretch out sufficiently for restful, comfortable sleep at night.

The principal objects of my invention are to devise a passenger coach arrangement in which each passenger is afforded a fully individualized, reclinable seat; to arrange such seats so that in reclining position, the occupant can stretch out virtually full length; to enable each passenger to pair his seat with either of the adjacent seats on the same side of the aisle when he desires; to permit complete enclosure of each seat space when it is desired to have full privacy; to enable enclosure of two or more adjoining seat spaces as a unit in the case of persons traveling together; to make each seat a preferred type window seat with unobscured view, yet affording direct access to the center aisle; to insure maximum comfort and convenience both for daytime and nighttime travel; to furnish each passenger with his own wash stand; to design a flexible seating arrangement readily adaptable to dome cars and double deck arrangements, yet capable of modification to permit installation of berths; and to achieve these and other objects without appreciably limiting the passenger capacity per car, these and other objects being accomplished as hereinafter described, reference being bad to the accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a portion of the length of a railroad passenger coach equipped with my improved seating facilities, and having curtain means for enclosing some of the seats and permanent partitions separating other seats;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view on the line 2--2 of Fig. 1 showing a seat with the back portion thereof in upright position;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view on the line 33 of Fig. 1 showing a seat with the back portion thereof in full reclining position; and

Fig. l is an enlarged sectional View on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawing in which I have illustrated my invention as applied to a railroad coach, the reference numeral Ill indicates the floor of the coach and il and I2 the opposite side walls respectively thereof, each of which has conventional windows [3 therealong elevated as usual above the floor l0 and separated by the customary mullions I4, these windows being of suitable width and spaced apart to provide an individual window for each seating space or compartment area as hereinafter more fully explained.

As is customary, an aisle [5 is provided which extends lengthwise of the coach and at the opposite sides of which my improved seating facilities are located, and at its ends the coach may be provided with any desired washroom, vestibule, and entrance doorway arrangement.

Generally, such coaches are provided at each side of the aisle with a series of double occupancy seats each directly ahead of the other and arranged at right angles to the car sides so that the occupants of the seats face toward the end of the coach. However, in accordance with my invention, a series of single occupancy seats is pro-- vided at each side of the aisle [5 and each seat faces obliquely toward the respective side Wall at an angle of approximately 35 degrees so that each seat occupies an individual oblique space of seat width and of such overall length from the aisle 15 to the respective side walls II or I2 that it will accommodate the occupant of the seat in reclining, outstretched position. The windows i 3 are so arranged that there is an individual window at the outer end of each said individualized oblique seating space. For convenience, the oblique seating spaces shown in the drawing are indicated respectively and distinguished from one another by the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, and L.

These obliquely arranged seats are indicated as a whole each by the reference numeral I6 and for reasons hereinafter explained each seat is movably supported for convenient movement lengthwise in the individual oblique space which it occupies, from a position directly alongside the aisle I5 to a position close to the respective side wall If or H.

Any convenient meansmay be provided to afford such movement of the seats [5, as for example the floor It may be provided within each seat space with a pair of parallel recessedguideways I! extending lengthwise and arranged respectively at or near the opposite sides of said oblique seat space, and the understructure of the seat [6 has rollers l8 locatedin and movable.

along these guideways ll to afi'ordthe'required adjustment of the seat oblique space.

Preferably, facilities are provided for holding the. seat. against movement in any position of adjustmentalong the guideways' ii and any. convenient facilities may be employed for this purpose. As an. example thereof, each seat may have a; lever is pivoted to the side thereof and having a depending link 29 with a brake shoe 2! at.the lower end which in the normal horizontal position of the lever i9 is. free of brake contactwith.theguideway ll, butis frictionally engaged thereagainst whenthe lever l9 is-lifted to the upright position. It. will be understood, of course, that the guideway and braking. facilities as described are examples of those which may be employed- Other examples are in commonuse as mountings for automobile front seats enabling such seats to be moved forward or backward. and held firmly in the desired location in thesame manner as contemplated in my invention.

Each seat. I6 is of the reclining type and has a baGke22. which is normally in upright position asshown in Fig. 2, but which is adjustable to a, comfortable reclining position as shown in Fig. 3..'and to various intermediate positions. Such reclining seats are well known and the detailsof construction thereof are. not shown inasmuchas the particular typeof reclining seat forms no part of the present invention.

The. guideways I! are. of sufiicient length so that the seat IE is movable outwardly from the aisle i5 toward the car sidewall end of the respective'oblique seating space so that when thus moved away from the aisle 15, the seat back 22.

may be lowered into the full reclining position shown in Fig. 3 without projecting out into the aisle [5. It is preferred that said reclinable seat back 22 be so arranged that it cannot be adjusted tov a reclining position when the seat 1% is, at the aisle end of the oblique seating space. For this purpose, a low arcuate wall or guard 23 of approximately seat back height may be provided at the aisle end of the seating space. Such a guard 23 requires that the seat be moved sufficiently outwardly from the aisle l5 forv any desired reclining position of said seat itso that the seat back 22 in such position will not protrude into the aisle l5. Moreover, the guard 23 serves the added purpose of shielding or protecting the head of the seat occupant from being bumped accidentally by persons moving through the aisle i5 when the seat back 22 is in reclining position and the passenger is reclining thereon.

It" will be, understood that other means ;,may

be employed for restricting the reclination of the seat back 22;, so vthat itcannottbeltilted; into it lengthwise of the 4 the aisle l5 and any suitable means may be employed for that purpose.

In order to permit maximum movement of each seat It alon its guideways ll within its particular oblique seating space, I prefer to have the seat back 22 somewhat rounded to correspond to the arcuate shape of-the low wall or guard 23, and the aisleward side of said seattback 22 may be beveled to align with the edge of the aisle l5. Thus the seat 16 may be moved inwardly to the edge of the aisle I5 Without the back 2'2-of 'saidseatextending into the aisle [5.

At the outer end of each oblique seat space, an upholstered auxiliary seat 24 is provided underneath the window 13 and so located that when the seat I6 is in itsoutermost position in the guides. i-l, in which position the seat back 22 may occupy the reclining position shown in Fig. 3, the auxiliary seat. 2 lis located at such level directly in front of theseat 16 that itprovi'des a leg and foot supporting continuation thereof. Thus when the seat occupant is stretched out in the reclining position, 'he' is provided with substantially continuous, comfortable, full length support, as indicated in Fig.3, which affords unusually restful reclining accommodation for overnight travel.

This auxiliary seat 24" maybe mounted onth'e respective car side wall I l or it so that it can be folded flush thereagainst' under the window :3 and over the conventional heating pipes 25 as shown in Fig. 2. For'this purpose, eachauxe iliary seat 24'may be provided with pins. 26' at the respective sides thereof adjacent the wall and adapted to slide freely in wall slots 271 Folding legs or brackets 28 may be securediat' one end to the car side walll'l or [2. and at the. other end to theouter'extremity ofthe auxiliary seat MI so as to support; said auxiliary seatZfi in a horizontal position asshown inFfig. 3.

The folding auxiliary seat. arrangement is shown in the seating spaces A, B, C; D, E, G, H, and 1. However, when the'respective.seat' ing spaces are permanently partitioned. .as'here inafter explained, the auxiliary seatv may be'a boxed-in toilet as indicated at z with" an up;

holstered lid 30 corresponding, to the auxiliary,

ing spaces for overnight use,,curtain facilities. 3! may be provided which are suspended from overhead curtain rods or tracks32 which are mounted on the car ceilingfit-andshaped .to cor.- respond to the margins-of the, oblique seating, spaces so that the curtains maybe pulledalong:

the respective curtain rods. or tracks 32 and ex:

tended in a position to enclose the respective seat;- spaces.

Preferably, the respective seat- 7 spaces?v are: separated at the car, sidewall: end, by narrows stub partitions 34 disposed ;.between .the;respective; windows l-31;and. at erightjanglesato the trees spective car side walls II and [2. Each stub partition 34 extends from the floor ill to a conventional overhead luggage rack 35. On one side, each stub partition 34 is provided with a wash stand 36 of substantially right triangular shape, the hypothenuse portion thereof comprising the front of the wash stand 36 and being substantially aligned with the edge of the corresponding oblique seating space so that the respective seat it may be moved up to the window l3 along side the wash stand 36 without interfering therewith. A waste receptacle 3? of substantially the same shape may be provided under the wash stand 36 as shown in Fig. 4 to receive soiled towels, waste paper, and the like.

At a suitable height over each wash stand 36, a shelf 33 may be provided on which clean fabric or paper towels 38 may be stacked for the use of the passenger occupying the contiguous oblique seating space. A mirror 40 may be mounted over the wash stand 36 on the stub partition 34 as shown in Fig. 4. Likewise an electric outlet 4! may be installed in the mullion I4 for the passengers use in operating an electric shaver or the like.

The overhead luggage rack 35 is of substantially the same dimensions as that in the ordinary passenger coach, but preferably is provided with partitions 42 corresponding substantially to the location of the respective stub partitions 34 and at right angles to the side walls It and I2 of the coach so that each passenger has his own overhead luggage compartment. Excess luggage may be stored under the auxiliary seat 24, thus affording space for considerable luggage in each passengers oblique seating space.

The outer end of each heretofore described curtain 3i adjacent the car side wall H or [2 is fastened to the stub partition 34 by means of buttons 43 or the like as shown in Fig. 2. The top edge of each curtain 3! is slidably mounted on the overhead rod or track 32 and each curtain 3| is of such length vertically that it reaches the floor l and of such horizontal dimension that ,when fully extended, it will pass marginally between adjacent oblique seating spaces, around behind the low wall or guard 23 behind the corresponding seat l6, and continues marginally along the aisle i to meet and attach to the next corresponding curtain 31, as shown at am, in Fig. 1.

For normal daytime use, the curtain 3| would be fully retracted and perhaps draped back over the hook 44 on the opposite side of the stub partition 34 from the wash stand 36. It could be removed from said hook 44 by the passenger on either side of said stub partition 34 when either desired partial or complete privacy. Thus, if a passenger desired to stretch out during the day in semi-privacy but without completely enclosing his space, he could draw the curtains 3| on either or both sides of his oblique seating space outwardly toward the aisle IE to provide whatever degree of isolation he might desire.

When complete privacy was desired, the passenger could pull the curtain 3! that, passes around behind his seat 16 out to its full length. He could pull the curtain 31 on the other side of his seat l6 out far enough to meet it. Thus, if he desired to wash, shave, change clothes, take a midday nap, or retire earlier than the other passengers, he could do so. If desired, the curtains 3] could be operated by means of draw strings such as are commonly used on residential curtain rods to manipulate draperies. Also, each curtain 3| could be supplied with suitably located buttons or snaps so that it could be fastened in closed position to the adjacent curtain 3l-thus preventing the passenger on one side from accidentally opening the intervening curtain 3| when his neighbor wanted it closed.

Each oblique seating space is provided with an overhead light 45 and may also have a light over the wash stand 36 if desired. The light 45 and any other lights in the oblique seating space are controlled by a switch 46 or switches located on the mullion 14 as shown. Thus each passenger is able to control the illumination in his own oblique seating space and, by drawing the curtains 3| on each side of his space, he can be independent of the lighting in the adjoining seating spaces.

Normally, when unoccupied, each seat [6 would be backed up against the low arcuate wall or guard 23 with the seat back 22 in upright position as shown in Fig. 2. It is important to note that in said position, owing to the oblique seating arrangement, each seat I6 is accessible from the aisle l5. In other words, when the seat i6 is in upright position at the edge of the aisle l5, the space between the front of such seat [6 and next forward seat H5 or its low arcuate wall or guard 23 is sufiicient to permit convenient entry of the passenger into his oblique seating space.

Preferably the respective seats [6 are provided at each side with arms rests 41 and 48, respectively, and in order to further facilitate the passengers access to his seat, the armrest 4'! on the aisle side may be hinged to fold up out of the way as indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 2. Normally, however, the arm rest 41 would be kept down for maximum comfort when the passenger is in sitting up position and to keep the passenger within the confines of his oblique seating space when he is in reclining position. The arm rests 41 and 48 would also serve to protect the reclining passenger from encroachment by the passengers in the adjoining spaces.

When a passenger prepares to retire and the adjoining passengers have not already done so,

the passenger would remove the respective curtains 3! at each side of his oblique seating space from the respective hooks 44 on the stub partitions 34. He would then draw the curtain 3i nearest his seat It outwardly around the low arcuate wall or guard behind his seat [6 and marginally along the aisle l5 as far as it would go. He would then draw the curtain 3! on the opposite side of his oblique seating space outwardly to the aisle l5 where it would pass behind the next adjacent seat I6 and its low arcuate wall or guard 23 and meet the previously extended. curtain 3lthus fully enclosing his space.

With his seat 16 in upright, aisleward position, the passenger would have ample space between said seat It and the window it to enable him to change his clothes, wash up, and the like. When ready to go to bed, the passanger would pull the auxiliary seat 24 out from the wall into horizontal, leg-supporting position. He would then pull the seat l6 forward toward said auxiliary seat 24, place his feet on said auxiliary seat 24 so as to enable pulling the seat l6 all the way forward, and then adjust the seat back 22 into full reclining position. In that position, the passenger could stretch out full length as indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 3.

It will be understood that the positioning of the seat It with respect to the auxiliary seat 24 and the adjustment of the seat back 22 is controlled by the individual passenger thus enabling him--.to.,select1 the; position and adiustmentafrordiiighnn imaxi mm"comfort; v

It willi be noted; as'show'riin' Fig. I; that whena seat was inspac'e B' is' pulled intoliull for wa'r'dpo's'itiori, it is broughtinto'sideiby side relation' with the" adjoining seat" i 6 "ifiispace C on? the aisleward side wh'eii the latter is pushed'all the" way ba'cli' against the low arciiate walllor guara zs; Thus; as will.beunderstood'; w en an'y'jtwo adjacent passengers onthe sanieside of theaisle' lld'esir'i tddU-SOI they can pa'ir'tfieii seats I dinside by-side position'so' that they.nriaiz'i' sit'beside'each'other and converse; I

Also; iri'fthe cas of twodrmcre persoiisfitraveimg'togeth'er; such asa'rn'other a'n'd'hi 'child'ih', adjoining spaces could: be arranged en" suite at"- night 'byiuiifajstr'iing Jthe"intervening'curtains- 3'! from" the stub partition '34 and pushing th' inte't'vei'ii'rig. portion of such" curtains 3 I back tothe' aisle" Ill as'show'n" btW'eniheoblique seating spaces E and iii Fig 11 In'a prfird'Toim', the seats" HS would be slightly'less" than two feet in' overall width"; in'=' cluding"arm' rests-trend 58'." Each enclosa'bl' oblique seating" spac'e' 'would be approximatel'y"'- two feet in width" and" would extend diagonally from the centeraism 15%" the side wa11"lio'r 12 forming an acute angle therewith of approXi-' mat'ely'35 degrees: This arrangement would require approximately thr'e'e'fand onehalffeet of spacelen'gthwise bothi'along the aisleie a'nd along the 'sidewa'll l'l or?! 2."

Coaches" presentlyinuse' for long distance travel usually have" considerable space at each end devotedtomensand'womens wash rooms and each of these is provided with severalwashstands, a. toilet" compartment, and space" for" dressing, My invention would eliminatethe need for"suchspace-consuming 'wa'sh rooms 'sin'ce'eacd passenger would havehis own wash stand 36' and enclo'sable dressing" space." A coach" so equipped would "require'two 'smalbtoilet rooms" 59, one for men'a'nd'oneforwo1nen,andthese" could be located atone'endof the coach as shown inFig. 1; Thiswoulda11owconsiderablygreater space for-passenger?accommodations 'thari' where' largedres'sing "rooms are piovided; In a standf ardcar' 85 feet. in length; with a vestibule 49ffat at o'n'eend'onhn'ahd with twotoilet room's 5flas indicated inFig'." 1; itwo'u'ld be possib1eusing the: dimensions hereinbefore 'described -to pro videseats' i6 andc'orresponding oblique'se'ating" spaces" for approximatel'yi42 passengers. The" usualmodern overnight coach can accommodate" 44 passengers, but often times certain of the seats face the rear and are" not too desirable". In af coach embodying, my invention, all seats! 6 would face forward and. have the same conveniences? Thus all seats would beequally desirable andth'e effective seating capacity in a coach embodying my invention would beapproximately thesa'm'e' the floo'rof the ca'r'to n'earer'tracl; level in space between the trucks, and by raising "the" height of the roof of the car; ashas' been done" in recently developed c'om'riiiiteiboaches', it would be possible-to provide accornmodations of the type herein'describefd both on an upper'deck'and capacity per car. Myiiivention could also; be adaiatedquite readilyto' the type (bf-trains wheref meats of a'plurality 'of' traiiercoachesis' sup; ported 'atth rear on 'a painoi'spaedwheelsand is pivotally niourited 'attfie Irorit'end'on therar ofthe nextrorwaru traileri'c'oach. v

A" particularly advantageous rnodificatio'ii of' my. invention is shown; in Fig l'in conjunction With seating spaces J K, and L, wherein erma' nent' partitionstl are" installed between the respectiv" obliquesatin'g spaces instead of the curtains 3i. Eachpaitition EIBXtrfds obliquely' between" the adjoining'oblique' seating spaces ahd"'cbn'tiriues' ar'ound'bhind the'sat l6 andai short distance along tlieedgelo'f theaisle 15. Each compartment J K, andlli thus forined'by" the partitions" 5 i has its" own doorway at" the aisle, and said doorway"may'beclosed"by means of a Vertically split curtain fiif Said" curtain ezma' be suspended homers"damages andv fastened along one side" to the aisleward end of the partition 5! and along the 'othensideto the" baok oi the next partition 5|. When the as senger does not desire full privacy, the 're'spec? tive sides of the splitcurtain'52 maybe fastened back out of the way in any desired manner such asb'y means of strapsor'the like. When hew'ants' the curtain 52" closed, hemay fasten the respective sides together b'y mea'nsof but tons',.snaps, or the like or'the respective sides may be closed by means of a slide fastener such as is commonly used on'similar' split curtains in thedoorways of Pullman roomette'accorhmodatlOllSI t The seats it in the compartments thus" described would be arranged in the sanie manner and operate in the same way asthoseii'i the open section of the coach shown in Figlf 1 where the seats !6 are enclosable'b'y'means of curtains 31. However, as heretoforeexplained, the'a'ux iliary seat and'lleg'rest would' cornprise a'b oxed in toilet29 with a hinged upholstered lid3'q, thus providing complete facilities'in eachpar'titioned" compartment J, K", and L. V

In an alternative arrangement, the"com'part-"' ment could'be provided with an overhea'd berth" (notshown) of substantially the same dimes;- sionsas the interior of the partitioned comparfl ment. Thus, after closing the split "curtainiff thep'assenger could stand in the triangularjspace 4 between said'curtain 52' and th'eseat' lfiwhile lowering the overhead berth into position onthe reclining seat i5, the flexibility of the curtain 52 making it possible for himto stand somewhat ih'the aisle E5if necessary'while doing sof While the space thusprovided wouldbe 'rela-' tive'lynarrow for a berth, it willfb e' understood" that the spacing could be widened if desired; thus reducing the number of oblique passenger com partrnents in the car; and the length of the berths could be increased by ch ang-ingithe angle at which the'accommodations are 'dis pose'din'f the car. It'should be'bor'ne' in m n of course; that the herein described accommodationsere not intended to offer the utmost "incon'ifort or luxury." Rather, they are designedito affordboiisiderably'greater conifort and conveniencefon coach "class passengers" without appreciably" li in' f itin'g the capacity of coaches since'itisthat" cal pa'city which makes the economical coach-fares 7 possible. Persons desiring greater spaciousness and luxury would 'continue to' use Pullman accominodations. v V V H accent development's'f' in seating f'su'ch as the so called contour chairs indicate-"that a; particularly comfortable position for complete, sleep-inducing relaxation is to'have the body supported in a relatively fiat V-shape. The seats H3 in combination with the auxiliary seats 24 might well embody a modified contour chair design. This would appear to have special advantages in coach seats since, by supporting the body in the flattened V-shape, the common tendency of ones body to slip forward in the seat owing to the vibration of the train would be counteracted. Moreover in the flattened \I- position, the body is not stretched out to its full length and the passenger space required would not be quite as long as where the occupant would lie flat.

While I have shown and described my invention in the preferred forms, it is to bejunderstood, of course, that various modifications can be made in my railroad coach'seating facilities employing the principles of my invention without departing from the spirit thereof, the scope of my invention being determined by the accompanying claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A passenger compartment or the like having a side wall with a series of windows therealong, said compartment having therein a series of individual passenger seats along said side wall and facing windowward, each of said seats being adjustable from an upright seating position to a reclining position and movable obliquely toward and away from the side wall along a prescribed path paralleling the path of oblique movement of the next adjoining seat.

2. A passenger compartment or the like having a side wall with a series of windows therealong, said compartment having therein a series of individual passenger seats along said side wall and facing windowward, each of which said seats is individually adiustable from an upright seating position to a reclining position and is individually movable obliquely toward and away from the side wall along a prescribed path paralleling the path of oblique movement of the next adjoining seat, each seat at the extremity of its oblique movement away from the side wall having a space at one side thereof which is unobstructable by any other of said seats and has a passenger entrance'therefrom to the front of such seat.

3. A passenger compartment or the like having a side wall with a series of windows therealong, said compartment having therein a corresponding series of individual passenger seats along said side wall, each of which said seats faces toward a separate one of said windows and is adjustable from an upright seating position to a reclining position and is movable obliquely toward and away from the side wall and its respective window along a prescribed path paralleling the path of oblique movement of the next adjoining seat, one of each two adjoining seats being retractable obliquely beyond the fully retracted position of the other of such two adjoining seats to provide a passageway therebetween.

4. A passenger compartment or the like having a side wall with a series of windows therealong, said compartment having therein a series of individual passenger seats along said side wall and facing windowward, each of said seats being adjustable from an upright seating position to a reclining position and movable obliquely toward and away from the side wall along a prescribed path paralleling the path of oblique .10 movement of the next adjoining seat, each two adjoining seats being movable to positions of lateral alignment with one another and one thereof being obliquely retractable rearwardly beyond theother to provide a passageway therebetween.

5. A passenger compartment or the like having a floor with a side wall extending upwardly therefrom and provided with a series of windows therealong at an elevation above the door, said floor having a corresponding series of laterally parallel runwayswhich are arranged at spaced intervals along the wall and each of which extends obliquely toward the wall at a separate window location, each runway having a seat mounted thereon which is movable obliquely along the runway toward and away from the respective window location and is adjustable from upright seating position to a reclining position.

6. A passenger compartment or the like having a side wall with a series of windows therealong, said compartment having therein a series of individual passenger seats along said side wall and facing windowward, each of said seats being adjustable from an upright seating position to a reclining position and movable obliquely toward and away from the side wall along a prescribed path paralleling the path of oblique movement of the next adjoining seat, and an individual foot rest in front of each seat and to and from which the seat is obliquely movable.

7. A passenger compartment or the like having a floor with a side wall extending upwardly therefrom, a series of adjoining individual elongated parallel compartments extending obliquely inward from the side wall and each having an entrance at the side thereof near the inner end, said side wall having a separate window at the outer end of each said individual compartment,'and each compartment having a seat therein which extends from side to side thereof and is adjustable from an upright seating position to a reclining'position and is movable lengthwise of the oblique individual compartment along a prescribed path. i

8. A passenger 'com'partmentor the like having a floor with a side wall extending upwardly therefrom, a seriesof adjoining individual elongated parallel compartments extending obliquely inward from the side 'wall and each having an entrance at the side thereof near the inner end, said side wall having a separate window at the outer end of each said individual compartment, and each compartment having a seat therein which extends from side to side thereof and is adjustable from an upright seating position to a reclining position and is movable lengthwise of the oblique individual compartment along a prescribed path, said individual compartments having enclosing walls which are removable.

9. A passenger compartment or the like having a floor with a side wall extending upwardly therefrom, a series of adjoining individual elongated parallel compartments extending obliquely inward from the side wall and each having an entrance at the side thereof near the inner end, said side wall having a separate window at the outer end of each said individual compartment, and each compartment having a seat therein which extends from side to side thereof and is adjustable from an upright seating position to a reclining position and is movable lengthwise of the oblique individual compartment along a prescribed path, said individual compartments I1 7 being enclosed bytcurtains' WhichLare retractable to the side wall.

.10. ,A passenger compartment ortthe like lhaving :a floor with ,aiside .wall iextendingupwardly therefrom, a series of adjoiningindividualelongated parallel vcompartments.lextending .dbliquely inward from the side wall-Hand :eahhaving an entrance at the side thereof near ,the inner .end, said side wallihavingiaiseparate Windowattthe outer end of each said individual compartment, and each compartment having .a .seat ,therein which extends lfromtsideffao side thereof .andeis adjustable from :an upright seating position .to

a reclining position and is .movable lengthwise of the oblique individual .compartment along ,a

prescribed path, .the adjoining. individual compartments 'having curtains :therebtween each of which is withdrawablelto lthe-side ,wall.

v11. .A passengereompaitment or the'like having a side wall --with .a series -.of windows therealong, SaideQmpartmentThaVing .therein, atseries of individual .passengerseatsalong said-.side.wall and facing -.window.war d,-leach .er saidiseats being adjustable from an uprightlseating position .to

a reclining position .and imovable obliquely toward and .away rrem the side qwallialongr a .pre-

scribed path paralleling .Jthe ,path er oblique .movement ,of the n'ext. adloining seat, I-the. space occupied ,by .each .seat having an .lelongated enclosure of approximately seat width .by which it is isolatable from each next xadjoining seat space and which extends .obliquelylinward .from said wall to the 31111; distance-of. retractionuof ..the

seat enclosed thereby fandiha's -a .closablet,.access opening at onesidelof the-.outereend;leadingtinto the interiorof the.enclosure eachtofthe opposite sides of said 'enclosure-. comprising a suspended curtain whichiisretractable Ito andcollapsible. in a compactgatheringiatithe side wall.

12. A passenger compartment or jthefllike. having afioor Withta side 'walliextending upwardly therefrom, a series'ofadjoining individual elongated parallel compartments extending obliquely inward from the side walland each 'having an entrance atthe side thereof near the inner end, said sidewall having aseparate window at the outer end of eachisaid individual compartment, and each compartment having a seat therein which extends from ;side toside thereof and is :iadjustable tfromjan uprightfseatugg .positionito1a ireclining,,position land. is ;m,ovab1e lengthwise of the oblique individual .i'compartment along aprescribed ,path, said compazitmentsihavirrg ,perma- 'of.,the.vehicle,.-.said side wallheingprovided with a, leg rest-adapted etc cooperate with said chair so that when the .latter islin :a position adjacent the leg rest and theback portion of .theseat .is

in reclinin position, a substantially'fulLlength, horizontal hody sllpl ortiismrovided.

I l. In, a passen'ge'rvehicleofithe ,class. descrihed having .a floor, .a,si'dewall.,along one.-side ofisaid substantially parallel with said sidewall, ta --Dlu- 'rality of passengerjseatin g compartments, ,each of said compartmentsfibeing disposed substantially; obliguely'between'ithejsidewall and .theaisle, respectively, and havingga partitionrat each side thereof "extendin obliquely jfrom adjacent .the

aisle towardthesidewalli'arid eajchof said compartmentsihavingal'seattherein adapted to be moved along "an lobliqu'e path ,betweensaid partitions "from a p0Siti0I1 adjacent lthe aisle to a position near" the sidewall.

"EU ENE 'ilVIANNING GILES.

' EEEFERENGES CITED JIhe following references are 1 of ;record in the IUNITED TSTATES SPATEN-TS Number "Name Date $721864 "Strauss Apr. 23,1901 1 889274 ,Dahms NOVQZB, 1932 25229508 "Ragsdale et a1. Jan.21, 19 4l 

